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October 15, 2004 Wachovia and SouthTrust Receive Federal Reserve Approval of Merger Application CHARLOTTE, N.C., AND BIRMINGHAM, ALA. – Wachovia Corporation (NYSE: WB) and SouthTrust Corporation (NASDAQ: SOTR) announced today that the Federal Reserve Board has approved the application for the SouthTrust/Wachovia merger. "We are extremely pleased to have received this approval from the Federal Reserve," said Ken Thompson, Wachovia’s chairman, president and CEO. "We are committed to bringing the best in products and customer service to our expanded customer base." "We are very confident that the integration of Wachovia and SouthTrust will be very smooth and we look forward to continuing our longstanding service commitment to our customers and communities," said Wallace Malone, chairman and CEO of SouthTrust. "We firmly believe that the combination of these two great companies will produce excellent performance for our shareholders." Wachovia and SouthTrust announced their agreement to merge on June 21, 2004. In order to complete the merger, Wachovia and SouthTrust must each receive shareholder approval for the merger. Both companies will hold shareholder meetings on October 28, 2004. Institutional Shareholder Services Inc., the nation's leading independent stockholder advisory organization, issued a report recommending that Wachovia shareholders and SouthTrust shareholders vote for the proposed merger between the two companies. The companies anticipate closing the transaction on or about November 1, 2004, contingent on shareholder approval of both companies. Wachovia Corporation (NYSE:WB) is one of the largest providers of financial services to retail, brokerage and corporate customers, with retail operations from Connecticut to Florida and retail brokerage operations nationwide. Wachovia had assets of $436.7 billion, market capitalization of $61.4 billion and stockholders' equity of $33.9 billion at September 30, 2004. Its four core businesses, the General Bank, Capital Management, Wealth Management, and the Corporate and Investment Bank, serve 12 million client relationships (including households and businesses), primarily in 11 states and Washington, D.C. Its full-service retail brokerage firm, Wachovia Securities, LLC, serves clients in 49 states. Global services are offered through 33 international offices. Online banking and brokerage products and services also are available through Wachovia.com. SouthTrust Corporation (www.southtrust.com) is a $52.9 billion regional bank holding company with headquarters in Birmingham, Ala. SouthTrust operates 736 banking and loan offices and 890 ATMs in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. The company offers a complete line of banking and other related financial services to commercial and retail customers. SouthTrust is a Forbes Platinum 400 company that trades on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol SOTR. The company is listed on the S&P 500 index and the Keefe, Bruyette & Woods BKX Index. Additional Information The proposed merger will be submitted to Wachovia's and SouthTrust's shareholders for their consideration. Stockholders are urged to read the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus regarding the proposed transaction between Wachovia and SouthTrust and any other relevant documents filed with the SEC because they contain important information. You may obtain a free copy of the joint proxy statement/prospectus, as well as other filings containing information about Wachovia and SouthTrust, at the SEC's Internet site (http://www.sec.gov). You will also be able to obtain these documents at www.wachovia.com under the tab "Inside Wachovia—Investor Relations" and then under the heading "Financial Reports - SEC Filings". You may also obtain these documents at www.southtrust.com under the tab "About SouthTrust", then under "Investor Relations" and then under "SEC Documents". Copies of the joint proxy statement/prospectus and the SEC filings incorporated by reference in the joint proxy statement/prospectus can also be obtained, without charge, by directing a request to Wachovia Corporation, Investor Relations, One Wachovia Center, 301 South College Street, Charlotte, NC 28288-0206, (704) 374-6782, or to SouthTrust Corporation, P. O. Box 2554, Birmingham, AL 35290, (205) 254-5187. Additional copies of the joint proxy statement/prospectus may also be obtained by contacting Wachovia's proxy solicitor, Georgeson Shareholder Communications, toll free at 1-800-255-8670, or SouthTrust's proxy solicitor, Morrow & Co., Inc., toll free at 1-877-366-1576. *** Investors seeking further information should contact Wachovia Investor Relations: Alice Lehman at 704-374-4139; or SouthTrust Investor Relations: Bill Prater at 205-254-5187. Media seeking further information should contact SouthTrust Corporate Communications: David M. Oliver at 205-667-5429, or dial 205-667-5469 and ask to speak to a media relations representative; or Wachovia Corporate Communications: Mary Eshet at 704-383-7777 or Christy Phillips at 704-383-8178. |
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